Wash basin and soap dish combinations

ABSTRACT

A plastic wash basin designed to have a soap container or dish removably snapped thereon, said wash basin being either rectangular, round, or any other desired contour, and said soap dish having integral locking means thereon which permits the intentional removal of said dish when desired but which prevents the same from becoming inadvertently or accidentally disengaged from the basin.

[ Dec. 4, 1973 United States Patent 11 1 Kohler 4/167 UX 4/l67 UX 4/167 312/227 [5 WASH BASIN AND SOAP DISH 1,187,804 6/1916 Beardsley.........................

COMBINATIONS 1,409,255 3/1922 Smith 1,442,391 1/1923 Filipache [75] Inventor: Terry J. Kohler, Sheboygan, Wis. 3 251 37 [73] Assignee: The Vollrath Co., Sheboygan, Wis.

5/1966 Parson,

Primary Examiner-Henry K. Artis [22] Filed: 1972 Attorney-Arthur L. Morsell, Jr. et al.

21 Appl. No.: 221,575

[57] ABSTRACT lastic wash basin designed to have a soap container or dish removably snapped thereon, said wash basin either rectangular, round, or any other desired and said soap dish having integral locking means thereon which permits the intentional removal w A be 74 7 20m2 2 2 nw Imn 3 6 R Ia "m wml l m mh c "r 8 e "us I hf C .M Umm. ll] 218 555 [[l of said dish when desired but which prevents the same [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS from becoming inadvertently or accidentally disengaged from the basin.

4/166 4/167 5 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures 3,591,871 7/l97l 577,528 2/1897 Kachler.....

1 WASH BASIN AND SOAP DISH COMBINATIONS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to soap-bar-holding containers or so-called soap dishes for use in conjunction with a lightweight movable wash basin.

2. Description of the Prior Art Heretofore most plastic wash basins have not had any means thereon for holding a bar of soap, and as far as applicant is aware no one has previously designed a wash basin and soap dish combination comparable to the present invention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a novel wash basin and soap dish assembly wherein said soap dish is adapted to be removably snapped onto the basin as described, thereby permitting the quick and easy installation of the dish on a basin that does not include an integral soap dish, as is the case with most lightweight movable wash basins of the type herein concerned.

A further object of the invention is to provide a wash basin and soap dish combination as described wherein the soap dish can be readily removed from the wash basin for cleaning or replacement if desired.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a novel and versatile wash basin and soap dish combination as describedwhe'rein the wash basin can be either rectangular, round, or any other desired contour.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel soap dish as described which can be mounted on a rectangular wash basin facing either inwardly or outwardly, as desired. I

A further object is to provide a novel plastic wash basin and soap dish combination as described wherein said snap-on soap dish is provided with special flexible locking tabs designed to ensure said dish will be retained in position on the basin and will not inadvertently fall off. i

A further object is to provide a novel wash basin and soap dish assembly as described wherein both the wash basin and separable soap dish are beveled for efficient, compact nesting and stacking when it is desired to store or transport the same. A

A further object ofthe invention is to provide a novel removable soap dish as described which is formed with specially designed shoulder elements on its side and front faces which facilitate the stacking of said dishes without their becoming wedged or stuck together.

A further object is to provide a novel removable soap a slight angle, as for example 10, to permit the nestingdish as described wherein raised rib members are proproviding a unit which is both attractive in appearance and relatively inexpensive to manufacture.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the accompanying drawings illustrating one preferred form of the present invention, and wherein the same reference numerals designate the same parts in all of the views: I

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a rectangular wash basin without the soap dish mounted thereon;

FIG. 2 is a similar perspective view showing the soap dish installed on the basin;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a round wash basin without the soap dish attached;

FIG. 4 is a view similarto FIG. 3 showing a soap dish mounted on the wash basin;

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of the new soap dish featured in the invention;

FIG. 6 is a transverse sectional view through said dish taken along line 6--6 of FIG.. 5;

FIG. 7 is an end elevational view of the soap dish; and

FIG. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary view showing one of the basin-engaging arms projecting from the rear of said soap dish.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now more particularly to FIGS. 1 and 3 of the drawings, the wash basin utilized in the present invention is preferably formed of a lightweight, durable plastic material (although any desired material can be used) and can be either rectangular in shape, such as the basin 10 illustrated in FIG. 1, round, as exemplified by the basin 11 in FIG. 3, or any other desired shape. The illustrated basins are tapered downwardly to permit the nesting and vertical stacking of a plurality of said basins for compact storing or transporting. As will be seen in said FIGS. 1 and 3, said basins are provided with a top horizontal flange'l3 extending around their peripheries, and formed in said flange 13 is a pair of spaced, slotted openings 14 which are designed to receive and retain arm members 25, 26 (FIGS. 2 and 4) formed on and projecting from the rear of the novel soap dish 16 featured in the invention, as will be hereinafter described in greater detail. 7

Referring now more particularly to FIGS, 5-7 of the drawings, the new and improved soap dish incorporated in the invention is generally rectangular in form, including a bottom 17, rear wall 18, front wall 19, and side walls 20 and 21 which are tapered downwardly at and vertical stacking of saiddishes when it is desired to store ortransport the same. In this respect, and as best eappears in FIGS. 5 and 7, formed on the side walls 20, 21 and front'wall 19 of said dish are integral shoulder elements 23 which extend downwardly from the upper edge of said dish to a point intermediate the height thereof, said shoulder elements having flat bottom faces 23 which are designed to abut the flanged top edge of the dish the'rebelow whensaid dishes are stacked to prevent their becoming'tightly wedged or stuck together.

-Said soap dish 16 is preferably molded of a semiflexible plastic material such'as 0.04-inch thickness polyethylene, in orderto combine the necessary flexibility with a degree of rigidity designed to produce a dish which; is'not only yieldable to permit the same to be removably snapped onto a wash basin, as hereinafter described, but which results in a unit'which is tough, durable, and long lasting. Although a plastic such as polyethylene has been found to be very satisfactory, and results ina unit which. is relatively inexpensive to manufacture, it is to be understood thatother plastics or materials could also be utilized both in the molding of the wash basins and soap dishes, and the invention is not to be limited or confined in this respect. Similarly, the unit can be provided in a variety of attractive colors and neither is the. invention to be limited in this respect.

As is shown in the drawings, the upper edge of the soap dish 16 is provided with a narrow lateral flange 24, and the rear wall 18 of said dish has basin-gripping arms 25, 26 projecting rearwardly from each end thereof, said arms being spaced apart a distance equal to the distance between the aforementioned slots 14 in the wash basin top flange. As best appears in FIGS. -8, said arms 25, 26 extend rearwardly in a horizontal plane from the upper edge of the dish back wall 18 a distance approximately the same as the distance between the edge of the wash basin top flange and the aforementioned slots 14 therein, and have downwardly deflected legs 25, 26, respectively, terminating in enlarged bottom portions 27 having flat, upwardly facing shoulders 27 (FIG. 8), the function of which will be seen.

To install the soap dish on a rectangular wash basin such as the basin 10, as illustrated in FIG. 2, the soap dish can be positioned to face either inwardly or outwardly relative to said basin. The downwardlydeflected portions 25', 26' of the arms 25, 26 projecting from the rear of said dish are then inserted through the slotted openings 14, the enlarged lower portions 27 on said arms necessitating the use of slight force'to urge said arms through said slots, which is permitted by the semi-resilient, yieldable nature of the material from which said dish is formed. Once said arm. portions 27 have been snapped through said slots the aforementioned upwardly facing shoulders 27 thereon form locking means abuttable against the underside of the basin top flange 13 to prevent said soap dish from inadvertently becoming disengaged and falling off said ba- To remove the dish 16 from the basin, as when it is desired to clean the same or empty any wateraccumu: lation therefrom, it is merely necessary to lift upwardly and manually snap the shoulder members-27 past the slots 14, which can be easily accomplished due to the resilient, yieldable nature of said material as described.

With a circular wash basin such as the basin 11 shown in FIGS. Sand 4, the soap dish can be mounted thereon or removed in the identical manner described above, with the exception that said soap dish must be positioned facing inwardly, due to the contour of said basin. As mentioned, with the rectangular wash basin illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, by contrast, the soap dish 16 can be installed facing either outwardly, as shown in full lines in FIG. 2, or facing inwardly as illustrated in broken lines.

With reference now more particularly to FIGS. 5 and 6 of the drawings, it will be noted that the bottom 17 of the present soap dish is provided with arcuate grooves 30, 31, 32 in its undersurface forming upright ribs in the interior of said dish extending transversely across the width of the dish. In the illustrated embodiment of the present invention there is a rib 30 spaced inwardly from one side of the dish, intermediate rib elements 31 which terminate short of the center of said dish (FIG. 1), and a rib 32 adjacent the other end of the dish. The function of said raised rib members 30'32' is to support and maintain a bar of soap above the bottom of the dish. The result is that said soap bar will not be in contact with any water which accumulates in the bottom of the dish, which causes the soap bar to become soft and mushy, and to quickly deteriorate. With respect to the accumulation of water in the bottom of the dish, this is an unavoidable source of annoyance with soap dishes, and, as hereinabove mentioned, one of the advantageous features of the present invention is that the present dish can be quickly and easily disengaged from the wash basin and any water accumulation therein poured out.

From the foregoing detailed description it will be seen that the present invention provides a new and improved wash basin and soap dish combination having a number of advantages over the devices heretofore used. For one thing, the novel soap dish featured in the present invention is so designed that it can be removably snapped onto the wash basin regardless of the shape of said basin. Moreover, the removability of said soap dish enables the same to be readily disengaged from the wash basin to empty any water that may accumulate therein, or to clean or replace said dish.

Further advantages of the novel snap-on soap dishcharacterizing the present invention are that it is provided with novel locking means to ensure that it won t inadvertently become disengaged or fall off the wash basin, it is beveled for efficient nesting when it is de sired to store or transport the same, said dish is provided with special shoulder members on its side and front walls designed to facilitate the stacking of said dishes without wedging or sticking together, and said dish is provided with ribs on its bottom surface adapted to support and maintain a soap bar above any water accumulation in the bottom of the dish. In addition, the removability of said soap dish facilitates the emptying of the wash basin and it also provides a place to store the soap bar while the basin is being emptied.

A further important featureof the present wash basin and soap dish assembly is that it may be formed of an economical plastic material, in any desired color, thereby providing a unit which is not only attractive in appearance but relatively inexpensive to manufacture.

It is to be understood that while one preferred embodiment of the present invention has been illustrated and described herein numerous variations or modified forms thereof will undoubtedly occur to those having skill in this art. What is intended to be covered herein therefore is not only the illustrated form of the invention but also any and all modifications or variations thereof as may come within the spirit of said invention.

What I claim is:

l. A combination wash basin and soap dish assembly, comprising: a wash basin having a peripheral flange projecting horizontally outwardly from its upper edge, said wash basin being tapered downwardly to permit the nesting and stacking of a plurality of said basins; a pair of spaced slotted openings formed in and through said wash basin top flange intermediate the width thereof; and a soap bar retaining dish removably mountable on said wash basin, said soap dish being formed of a semi-flexible and resilient material and being generally rectangular in shape, said dish including a front wall, a back wall, a pair of side walls, and a bottom, said walls being tapered downwardly to permit the nesting and stacking of said dishes, there being shoulders formed integrally on. said walls extending downwardly from the upper portion of the soap dish to a point intermediate the height thereof having flat bottom surfaces adapted to abut the upper edge of the dish therebelow when said dishes are stacked to prevent the same from becoming wedged together, a plurality. of rib members formed on the bottom of said soap dish adapted to support a bar of soap in said dish above any water accumulation in the bottom thereof; a pair of integral wash basin-engaging arm members projecting horizontally outwardly from the upper portion of the soap dish back wall adjacent the ends thereof, said armsbeing spaced apart a distance equal to the distance between said wash basin flange slots and extending rearwardly a distance approximately equal to the distance between said flange slots and the inner edge of said wash basin flange, said arms having downtumed outer portions with integral enlarged lower end members forming upwardly facing shoulders, said arm downtumed portions being adapted to be manually forcibly snapped through said wash basin flange slots to removably retain said soap dish on said basin, said upwardly facing shoulders on the lower ends of said arms being abuttable against the underside of said basin flange to prevent the inadvertent disengagement of said soap dish from the basin, the resiliency of said soap dish permitting said arm enlarged end portions to be readily manually forced upwardly through said flange slots when it is desired to separate and remove the dish from said basin.

'2. A combination wash basin and soap dish assembly comprising a wash basin having opposite, substantially parallel sides and having an outwardly projecting peripheral flange on the upper edge of at least one of said sides, said flange having a slot intermediate its width and said flange having an outer edge which is straight and parallel with the adjacent side of the wash basin; and a soap bar retaining dish having a substantially straight side wall and having basin-engaging means projecting laterally from the upper edge of said straight side wall; a downwardly deflected leg on said basinengaging means, which leg is spaced from the straight side wall of the soap dish a distance substantially equal to the distance between the edge of the basin flange and the slot therein and is removably engaged in said slot; and means at the lower end of said leg for removably holding the soap dish against displacement, the location of said slot intermediate the width of said basin flange and the substantially straight edges of the side walls of the basin and soap dish providing for mounting of the soap dish in a position facing either inwardly or outwardly relative to the basin, with the straight edge of the soap dish closely adjacent and substantially parallel to either the side wall of the basin or the edge of the basin flange.

3. A combination wash basin and soap dish assembly comprising a wash basin having a peripheral flange projecting horizontally outwardly from its upper edge, a slotted opening formed throughsaid flange, a soap barretaining dish removably mounted on said wash basin, said soap dish being formed of a semi-flexible and resilient material and being generally rectangular in shape, and including a front wall, a back wall, a pair of side walls, and a bottom, an integral wash basin-engaging arm projecting outwardly and having a portion extending downwardly from the upper portion of the back wall of the soap dish and removably inserted in the slotted opening of the wash basin flange to removably retain said soap dish in position on said wash basin, said wash basin-engaging arm including anenlarged lower end on the downwardly extending portion adapted to be manually snapped through the slot of the wash basin flange during assembly, and retaining the soap dish on said basin, the resiliency of said soap dish permitting said enlarged end portion of the arm to be readily manually forced upwardly through said slotted opening of the flange when it is desired to separate and remove the dish from said basin. v

4. The combination wash basin and soap dish assembly recited in claim 3 wherein said enlarged lower ends of the basin-engaging arms are provided with upwardlyfacing shoulders abuttable against the underside of said basin flange to prevent the inadvertent disengagement of said soap dish from the basin.

5. A combination wash basin and soap dish assembly comprising a wash basin having a peripheral flange projecting horizontally outwardly from its upper edge, a slotted opening formed through said flange, a soap barretaining dish removably mounted on said wash basin, said soap dish being formed of a semi-flexible and resilient material and being generally rectangular in shape, and including a front wall, a back wall, a pair of side walls, and a bottom, an integral wash basin-engaging arm projecting outwardly and having a portion extending downwardly from the upper portion of the back wall of the soap dish and removably inserted in the slotted opening of the wash basin flange to removably retain said soap dish in position on said wash basin, there being shoulders formed integrally on the exterior of said soap dish walls, which shoulders extend downwardly from the upper portion of the dish to a point intermediate the height thereof, and have lower ends adapted to abut the upper edge of a dish therebelow when a plurality of said dishes are stacked to prevent the same from becoming wedged together. 

1. A combination wash basin and soap dish assembly, comprising: a wash basin having a peripheral flange projecting horizontally outwardly from its upper edge, said wash basin being tapered downwardly to permit the nesting and stacking of a plurality of said basins; a pair of spaced slotted openings formed in and through said wash basin top flange intermediate the width thereof; and a soap bar retaining dish removably mountable on said wash basin, said soap dish being formed of a semi-flexible and resilient material and being generally rectangular in shape, said dish including a front wall, a back wall, a pair of side walls, and a bottom, said walls being tapered downwardly to permit the nesting and stacking of said dishes, there being shoulders formed integrally on said walls extending downwardly from the upper portion of the soap dish to a point intermediate the height thereof having flat bottom surfaces adapted to abut the upper edge of the dish therebelow when said dishes are stacked to prevent the same from becoming wedged together, a plurality of rib members formed on the bottom of said soap dish adapted to support a bar of soap in said dish above any water accumulation in the bottom thereof; a pair of integral wash basin-engaging arm members projecting horizontally outwardly from the upper portion of the soap dish back wall adjacent the ends thereof, said arms being spaced apart a distance equal to the distance between said wash basin flange slots and extending rearwardly a distance approximately equal to the distance between said flange slots and the inner edge of said wash basin flange, said arms having downturned outer portions with integral enlarged lower end members forming upwardly facing shoulders, said arm downturned portions being adapted to be manually forcibly snapped through said wash basin flange slots to removably retain said soap dish on said basin, said upwardly facing shoulders on the lower ends of said arms being abuttable against the underside of said basin flange to prevent the inadvertent disengagement of said soap dish from the basin, the resiliency of said soap dish permitting said arm enlarged end portions to be readily manually forced upwardly through said flange slots when it is desired to separate and remove the dish from said basin.
 2. A combination wash basin and soap dish assembly comprising a wash basin having opposite, substantially parallel sides and having an outwardly projecting peripheral flange on the upper edge of at least one of saiD sides, said flange having a slot intermediate its width and said flange having an outer edge which is straight and parallel with the adjacent side of the wash basin; and a soap bar retaining dish having a substantially straight side wall and having basin-engaging means projecting laterally from the upper edge of said straight side wall; a downwardly deflected leg on said basin-engaging means, which leg is spaced from the straight side wall of the soap dish a distance substantially equal to the distance between the edge of the basin flange and the slot therein and is removably engaged in said slot; and means at the lower end of said leg for removably holding the soap dish against displacement, the location of said slot intermediate the width of said basin flange and the substantially straight edges of the side walls of the basin and soap dish providing for mounting of the soap dish in a position facing either inwardly or outwardly relative to the basin, with the straight edge of the soap dish closely adjacent and substantially parallel to either the side wall of the basin or the edge of the basin flange.
 3. A combination wash basin and soap dish assembly comprising a wash basin having a peripheral flange projecting horizontally outwardly from its upper edge, a slotted opening formed through said flange, a soap bar-retaining dish removably mounted on said wash basin, said soap dish being formed of a semi-flexible and resilient material and being generally rectangular in shape, and including a front wall, a back wall, a pair of side walls, and a bottom, an integral wash basin-engaging arm projecting outwardly and having a portion extending downwardly from the upper portion of the back wall of the soap dish and removably inserted in the slotted opening of the wash basin flange to removably retain said soap dish in position on said wash basin, said wash basin-engaging arm including an enlarged lower end on the downwardly extending portion adapted to be manually snapped through the slot of the wash basin flange during assembly, and retaining the soap dish on said basin, the resiliency of said soap dish permitting said enlarged end portion of the arm to be readily manually forced upwardly through said slotted opening of the flange when it is desired to separate and remove the dish from said basin.
 4. The combination wash basin and soap dish assembly recited in claim 3 wherein said enlarged lower ends of the basin-engaging arms are provided with upwardly-facing shoulders abuttable against the underside of said basin flange to prevent the inadvertent disengagement of said soap dish from the basin.
 5. A combination wash basin and soap dish assembly comprising a wash basin having a peripheral flange projecting horizontally outwardly from its upper edge, a slotted opening formed through said flange, a soap bar-retaining dish removably mounted on said wash basin, said soap dish being formed of a semi-flexible and resilient material and being generally rectangular in shape, and including a front wall, a back wall, a pair of side walls, and a bottom, an integral wash basin-engaging arm projecting outwardly and having a portion extending downwardly from the upper portion of the back wall of the soap dish and removably inserted in the slotted opening of the wash basin flange to removably retain said soap dish in position on said wash basin, there being shoulders formed integrally on the exterior of said soap dish walls, which shoulders extend downwardly from the upper portion of the dish to a point intermediate the height thereof, and have lower ends adapted to abut the upper edge of a dish therebelow when a plurality of said dishes are stacked to prevent the same from becoming wedged together. 